BIJNOR: In a state as vast as Uttar Pradesh, the distance of villages from district headquarters often decides the fate of its development. Over 2 lakh people living in 185 border villages of Bijnor know it better than anyone else.For these villages, located on the fringes of UP, Kotdwar district of Uttarakhand is just four km away while their official headquarters in Bijnor is over 60 km far. Upset with almost "absent" development, these people have been seeking merger of the 185 villages into Uttarakhand.After decades of futile campaigns and protests, the formation of a single party-- BJP-- government in both the neighbouring states has rekindled the hope of these villagers.They had raised the issue of merger during the campaigning of UP assembly polls also. Seemavarti Sangharsh Samiti , an outfit dedicated for the merger of the UP's 185 villages with the hill state, is also hopeful after the formation of BJP governments in both the states. Samiti's chief convener Manmohan Singh says: "Locals here are very sure that they want to be a part of Uttarakhand. These 185 villages fall under 33 panchayats, and there is no development here."According to Shashi Dabaral , a resident of Talla Dhak village, located on UP-Uttarakhand border, "We are battling for inclusion of all the villages of border areas in Uttarakhand. "Interestingly, the UP government records show that some of our houses are in Uttarakhand, while our agriculture lands are shown belonging to UP. Our village is only four km away from Kotdwar, while Bijnor is 50 km away.""We don't get power supply from the UP side, Uttarakhand supplies it. Now, the hill state also wants to disconnect our power supply. There is no industry, educational institute or hospital in this region."

Stay updated with all the Meerut Latest News headlines here. For more exclusive & live news updates from all around India, stay connected with NYOOOZ.